Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1887-06-30
SECTIONxXII-A CONFEDERATE MAIL
BAG AND A GLIMPSE AT SOME OF
ITS CONTENTS.


ITS CONTENTS.
Just before the cessation of hostilities
Confederate mail-sack heavily laden with
letters, papers, etc, was captured north
OF Mobile. This some time in May was
emptied near where the writer's company
was encamped.
The contents were a confused mass OF
papers, torn envelopes and opsn letters,
all having been hurriedly examined at
division headquarters
Very many of the letters were so poorly
written as to be almost unintelligible;
others showed good penmanship and eiu-
cation, refinement and culture in the
writer's. All were written upon the thin,
poor, shoddy paper Of Confederate manu-.
facture. Several very crude wood cuts
were found that had been forwarded as
valentines to certain members Of the fair
sex by their admirers. One Of these, now
in the writer's possession, was printed on
the shoddiest kind OF paper by George
Dunn e. Company, publishers, Richmond,
Va, and just below a rude cut of female
with low-necked dress, short sleeves,
flowing skirts, wide fionnces and capacious
hoop skirt, is stanza the last words OF
which are "Ah let me still survive, and
burn in Cupid's flames, but let me burn
aAUe. "
The following is deemed Of sufficient in
terest to give in full:
NEAR AUGUSTA, Ca, March 2. fSG5.
Unknown Friend:
Being confined to our tents to-day In
order to have some pastime, Mr.. Kennedy, OF
Fifty-ffth Tennessee regiment, Quarle's Bri-
gade, proposed the names OF several young
ladies OF his acquaintance. Tho names were
all put on strips Of paper and then in n hat;
each one had TO draw per ballot, and the name
he a IN "a n nj ladv IN
eight names drew yours. and in discharging
the obligation resting on me you viii excuse
me for my presumption. will refer you 10 Mr..
Kennedy, who is friend OF yours and also
particular friend Of mine, for particulars re-
lating to me.
In doing justice to you, will state that am
quite young man and an Alabamian by birth;
have been soldering for four years; have
passed through many dangers, seen and un.
SEEN and by the kindness OF an oyerruling
Providence l am still spared, monument OF
Gods mercy. 1 hope 10 live 10 see this cruel
war over and that may then ilnd some loving
and eonfding companion and with her glide
smoothly down the stream OF time hand In
hand, until reach the valley OF death; even
then / hope 10 have so lived that can then
launch out upon the unknown future and ride
safely into port. ] have no news that will in
terest you. We are here in Carp OF Direction
awaiting orders. / think we viii not try 70
get with our command who are al or in vicinity
OF Columbia, S. c., but go To Montgomery, Sc
lima or Mobile. II We come % hobile viii DO
happy to form your acquaintance.
II Mr.. Kennedy is with me l viii try and do
so. Hoping that you will not think hard u this
but write in answer remain your sincere but
unknown friend. JAMES A. MCCAULY,
FIRST ALABAMA REGIMENT, COMPANY ~
QUARI.Es BRIGADE ARMY TENNESSEE.
This letter has now been in the writer's
81 aIs H.
has read it many times, and always with
renewed interest, and IL has never failed
to bring before his mind an all pcrvading
sense Of what Knight hare been" had it not
miscarried and fallen into the hands OF q
Yankee instead of the fair one intended.
ISae letter was in a great heap with
many others, and like all the rest had been
removed from it's envelope, so that it was
impossible to ascertain the name OF the
young lady addressed. 1t was written on
blue tinted paper of unusual good quality
for Confederate manufacture; the hand
writing good, and indeed the whole make
up of the letter was just OF the kind most
likely to impress the mind of young lady.
Had it reached its destination an interest
ing correspondence would certainly have
followed, and very likely love affair, and
perhaps an engagement and marriage May
there during the siege, firing at the in
vaders, and when off duty calling upon his
unknown friend" And may be he fell
at Spanish Fort or Blakely in defense of
his native Alabama.
Such letter as he writes is calculated
to set in operation thousand coniectures,
and then it has the ring Of the true soldier
with-as is usual with brave men-an entire
absence Of bitter epithets for his enemies.
In different vein is the following,
found at the same time and yet in the
writer's possession:
TALLAHASSEE LANDING, Dec. 20 c64) My
Dearly Beloved Mother: What in this
wide world is the matter with you all
Have the Yankees forbidden your writ
ing, and won't they allow your letters free pas
sage to Mobile? Just four years ago we arrived
home and were together How many events
have TRANSFERRED since that time. For four
years has desolating war been waged upon
our land and oh, how many have met their
fate, and fear many more will have TO sacri-
flee their lives before the end OF the struggle
for independence. suppose ere this you have
heard of the battle Of Franklin, Tenn, which
was fought two or three weeks ago. 1t must
have been an awful fight. Our soldiers charged
their line of breastworks and succeeded in cap
turing % them. 1t was great slaughter and
almost drawn battle. We claim a victory,
but lost from five to eight thousand men. OH
how many of our brave, true soldiers sacrificed
their lives on their country's altar that dayi
How many fond hopes and anticpations and
loved ones met their doom, and now lie buried
in the cold soil OF TENNESSEE Is itnot awful to
think Off
And when those they loved, OF in distant
States, hear of their deaths how sad their
hearts will bel We lost several good Generals
whose places can hardly be filed. The
ole fnfn ha Huht wifi
two hundred and twenty men and lost seventy
Loring's division that day lost seven hundred
men; il is said the loss OF line and field officers
was great.
heard from Cousin Bob not long since. He
was well and in fine spirits; he said they got
but very little TO eat, that they would kill hog
and never clean the hair or and they would
get their rations Of meat with the hair on and
cook it on a stick. He would make his bread
on his oil cloth and bake il on fence rail. He
has been in several fights since heard from
him. Well, mother, the Yankees have been
pretty close to US. They have been up on the
railroad as far as Pollard; they destroyed the
track for some distance and then left. There
was about four hundred white men and five
hundred negroes. Governor Watts has called
out the militia to drive them back. Yankee
General Sherman has evacuated Atlanta and
gone in the interior of the State; he has been
to MiledgeyilIe and several other towns
No one can imagine what he intends doing;
the papers say that he is soon to be surrounded
and captured. Ihope so, but fear he is too wide
awake to be caught in trap. The mean old
wretch! wish he would be caught and hung to
the first limb. Oh that was man; would
be willing to sacrifice every thing on earth and
go and fight for my country. ! daily wish that
/ was man. How wish / could see
you all and be happy once again on earth. Do
you hear from grandma oftenf How does she
and Aunt Vicky get along with the Ysnkeess
Where is howard now-in the army! Give my
love to aunty and the girls. How is
Mrs julia Murphy? Ny love TO her. suppose
you would like to hear something of the family.
All are WELL the children grow fast; they will
soon be large enough TO go to school. Hall is
so much like our family in every respect; he is
q smart. sweet child, and so are all the rest.
How do you expect TO spend your Christmasf
hope pleasantly. expect to see no pleasure at
all 1t viii be very dull one here. Dear
mother, do write often to me, and make BeclSie
write. too, ana tell me every thing concerning
you all. will close for this time
will look anxiously for letter from you.
Goodbye, dear mother; believe me. your low
ing child, VICTORIA NIXON.
On one margin of the letter was written
the following: Don't never send another
letter to Nix, as they generally open
them all at that Office Send them here
after TO Lowndes-now, be certain to doitr